Preventing the introduction into this country of insect pests that could potentially wreak havoc on the food supply is essential not only to the population's general well-being, but to the soundness of the agricultural economy. For example, were such species as the Mediterranean fruit fly (medfly) allowed to flourish in this country, citrus and other crops in California, Texas, Florida, and other subtropical areas would be devastated, and losses could total in the billions of dollars.
Typically, traps containing lures, pheremones (sex attractants), and the like are suspended from trees, foliage, and other naturally occurring platforms in an effort to attract and thereby detect insect pests, usually flying ones. Such traps are spread over many miles of territory to capture and thereby monitor the presence and any migratory patterns of the targeted insect species. The information derived is used to determine where and when control measures—such as insecticide applications, sterile-insect releases, pheremones releases (confusion techniques)—are to be taken.
This operation makes for a very efficient means of controlling or eradicating the targeted species from areas (especially large ones), and therefore is highly desirable from an agricultural and ecological standpoint. If pesticide is to be used, the procedure allows it to be applied selectively, only where needed—and only as long as needed—to effect control or eradication of the targeted species. Thus, contamination of the environment is minimized and cost savings may be realized from the judicious use of insecticide permitted.
Ultimately, though, the effectiveness and in many cases, the practicability of such approach hinges upon the rapid detection of the targeted insect or similar pest at numerous distributed monitoring sites. Only then, can incipient infestations, for instance, be treated with insecticide or other control measures quickly to eliminate the pests before they can spread. For example, to prevent the medfly from entering California, a great amount of time and money is currently being spent by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to monitor this insect pest with lure-baited traps. Workers must travel to and personally examine biweekly each of the approximately 150,000 lure-baited traps that are distributed over the State, each at a distance of a mile or more from another. Such efforts have continued to prevent the medfly from pervading this country since the species was eradicated from Florida in the late 1950s. There remains a need, therefore, for a method and system whereby fast, efficient, and accurate monitoring of numerous distributed sites may be effected within reasonable cost constraints.